Complete Guide to Outdoor Portable Bluetooth Speakers

Guide to Outdoor Portable Bluetooth Speakers

If you are a music lover, then the sound quality is essential to ensure you enjoy your favorite music to the fullest. Besides that, if you move with music wherever you go, consider buying portable Bluetooth speakers with sound quality. Even so, knowing what you are looking for to decide on the best portable Bluetooth speaker is crucial. Reason being, it might be hectic due to the many numbers of choices available in the market.

Defining what is a Portable Bluetooth Speaker?

This a handy accessory, which comprises of an amplifier, a battery, speakers and Bluetooth connectivity. The components make the speaker portable, and self-contained. In most cases, the speakers come with an auxiliary input, to enable wired connectivity whenever required. Further, the portable Bluetooth speakers feature an indicator, pairing button, volume controls, an on/ off switch and in some cases an NFC for easier pairing.

Before you buy a portable Bluetooth speaker, there are some factors that you should consider. These factors act as a guide to help you buy the best portable Bluetooth speaker that suits your needs. They include:

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• Size

Bluetooth speakers are available in different sizes. So, it is important you consider the size that suits your specifications. Larger sizes are design to offer higher quality audios, while small cylindrical or conical kinds are designed to offer higher portability and ease of packing into luggage. The larger sizes are either cylindrical or rectangular. Basically, larger sizes offer better audio quality, and they have a larger battery that can be used for long.

• Battery Life

This is one of the most essential parameters to consider when buying a portable Bluetooth speaker. You should choose a speaker with a longer battery life, which lasts for long while in use, instead of one that needs to be recharged after every hour. Often, small speakers have smaller batteries that last for a short duration, while some exceptional cases with larger batteries last for up to 24hours.

The average battery life is approximately four to ten hours, based on how louder you are playing your music. So, when buying a portable Bluetooth speaker, ensure it has a long battery life to suit your needs. Always keep in mind that most speakers use Li-ion batteries, which should not be discharged completely. Besides, the amount of charge stored by a battery falls as it gets older.

• NFC Connectivity

You can easily connect your music source such as an iPod or Phone to your portable Bluetooth speaker. However, you can make it much easier by avoiding the settings involved if your speaker is NFC enabled. The NFC feature allows you to start playing music instantly. It does so by allowing compatible devices to get connected directly to a speaker through Bluetooth, by joining them together. Even so, both the Bluetooth speaker and the music source should feature the NFC system.

• Audio Quality

You definitely want a portable Bluetooth speaker with good sound. However, manufacturers often provide complete harmonic distortion specifications. Below 1% is a better target, because a lower value offers better audio quality. If a speaker does not have the specifications, listen to it before buying. Moreover, the frequency response is crucial, as better frequency response makes some speakers better compared to others. For example, you might see 100Hz to 20Hz. The higher value stands for low frequency, while the lower value stands for higher frequency. But, you should go with the low frequency, as it shows the level of bass. Also, the higher is not that essential, as we can rarely withstand especially as we age.

• Waterproof

The fact that you can use portable Bluetooth speakers wherever you go, it is likely to use them near water. For example, when swimming, or even on travel and it rains. Therefore, you should ensure you buy a speaker that is waterproof because electronics and water are enemies. Although some speakers are submersible, we recommend you buy water resistant speakers, because you can use them near water. For example, on the beach or on the poolside as you swim.

• Ability to Connect Many Speakers

Although you can only find this feature in a number of portable Bluetooth speakers, but commonly found in Wi-Fi home speakers. The feature allows you to place speakers at various points and play music from a single source. For ease of connecting many speakers, some portable Bluetooth speakers have a mobile app which enables management of the connection.

• Speakerphone Ability/ Hands-free Feature

What would happen when listening to music and you are using your phone as the music source, then receive a call? If your Bluetooth speaker features a built-in microphone, you can use it to receive the call by pressing the button on the speaker. Once you hang up, playing of music continues. However, your conversation will be heard by everyone around the speaker.

• The Version of Bluetooth/Compatibility

New speakers that are available in the market feature recent Bluetooth versions like Bluetooth 5.0. So, if your source of music has an older Bluetooth version, you are likely to face pairing issues. To avoid such frustrations, ensure the version of your speaker is compatible with older Bluetooth versions. However, this should not be a concern, because most speakers come with either a micro USB or USB output connection, which you can use to charge your speaker, as well as installing updates related to compatibility issues.

• Durability

Before deciding on the best portable Bluetooth speaker to buy, do research on the durability of the brand, by reading reviews from those who have already used it. What would happen if you bought a speaker made with usual plastic, and by bad luck, it falls? It will definitely break. Thus, go a speaker that is built with strong and durable materials.

• Wired Inputs

Most older devices like iPod classic have no Bluetooth, yet you might consider using it as the source of your music. In such cases, you need to buy a good wired audio cable or a small Bluetooth transmitter. Although it is assumed that all speakers comprise of a 3.5mm jack input that allows connection with wire-only devices, ensure it is there, instead of assuming.

• Price

Although most people do not consider price when buying portable Bluetooth speakers, you should consider this factor. Reason being, the most expensive is not the best, but one with the best quality at a cheaper/ affordable price. Therefore, you should not buy costly Bluetooth speakers assuming they are the best because all electronics are prone to damage. Instead, you should buy a speaker based on your needs and budget, after taking a thorough study on reviews and descriptions online.

Conclusion

There are many brands selling portable Bluetooth speakers in the market today. Some of these brands are expensive, while others are cheaper. So, be ready to get confused if you don’t know what your needs are, and what you want.

To avoid buying a low quality portable Bluetooth speaker, understand your needs, and then do some research on quality by reading reviews and descriptions. After that, consider all the above factors to ensure you buy a speaker with not only great performance but high-quality sound.